Kayes, Mali

🇲🇱 Kayes is a city in western Mali on the Sénégal River. Kayes is the capital of the administrative region of the same name. The name "Kayes" comes from the Soninké word "karré", which describes a low humid place that floods in rainy season. The city is located 420 km north-west of the capital Bamako.

History Prior to French colonial expansion, Kayes was a small village. Its location on the path of the future Dakar-Niger Railway, and the French need for trade centres, led to the creation of the Kayes market town in 1881. It remains a transport hub, primarily for Senegalese trade, to this day. In 1892, Kayes became the capital of the French Sudan; Bamako replaced it as the capital, first of the state of Haut Sénégal-Niger on October 17, 1899, then as the capital of all of French Sudan in 1908.

During World War II, a portion of Poland's gold reserve, evacuated during the German-Soviet invasion in 1939, was stored for several years in Kayes before being transported to the United States in 1944, to be returned to Poland after the occupation and war ended.

Economy and transport Kayes lies on the Route Nationale 1 (RN1) highway and is 612 km (380 mi) by road from Bamako and 96 km (60 mi) from the border with Senegal. The town has an international airport (Kayes Airport), and lies on the Dakar-Niger Railway which offered regional passenger train service to Bamako three times a week via Kati and Diamou as of 2013. The area is rich in gold and iron.

Area Sites found in and around Kayes include: • Fort du Médine • Félou Falls, 15 km (9.3 mi) upstream on the Senegal river • Gouina Falls, 100 km (62 mi) to the south-east on the Senegal river • The tata (fortification) of Koniakari, constructed by El Hadj Umar Tall, 70 km (43 mi) to the northeast • Lake Magui and Lake Doro, both watered by the Kolimbiné River • The Manantali Dam.